It was only 5:00 PM on a cold night when she left the department store at the other end of the mall from where she had parked her car. It was dark outside already.

As she leisurely made her way thru the mall, half window shopping half thinking about her date with her new boyfriend, she suddenly got one of those feelings. You know the kind. The kind of feeling where the hairs bristle on the back of your neck from fear. You feel like someone just gave you a glass full of ice water down your back. Kind of frightening!

She quickly turned around to see nothing obvious-only scores of other shoppers. Only NOW she was on ALERT.

As Bonnie left the mall she started thinking about her plan. Where are my keys? Where’s my pepper spray? Did I leave my telescopic baton in the car? Where is the damn car anyhow?

She walked with her head up and with confidence reaching for her keys and pepper spray. Now armed with the spray in one hand and her keys as a weapon in the other, she approached her car.

Suddenly out of nowhere she heard the voice of a male 8 feet behind her asking her for directions. Before he could get another word out of his mouth she spun around and yelled at the top of her lungs “BACK OFF” and pointed the pepper spray at him.

She was loud enough that people 60 feet away in the parking lot looked up to see what was going on. The assailant wanna be saw this and took off before Bonnie could even get a good look at him.

Lessons to be learned are:

• TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS Better to be safe than sorry.

• HAVE A PLAN Take some self defense classes and learn how to react. They are everywhere. Self defense DVD’s are great.

• PRACTICE In your mind run thru what you are going to do and how you will do it. Practice with your non lethal self defense weapons so that using them is second nature.

• ALWAYS CARRY Have some kind of non lethal self defense weapons handy at all times. “Walk softly and carry a big pepper spray.”

Sometimes fate is not on your side. Isn’t it better to be prepared and win than fall victim to some goon and suffer the consequences? Practice does make perfect!

Jack Krohn is the #1 author of Home Security Articles in the country according to EzineArticles. He owns SECURITY SOLUTIONS a one stop resource that provides solutions and answers for all your self defense and home security problems.

Chances are very good that you are reading this because in some way crime has touched your life or you want to be proactive and protect yourself, family, home, or business from the ravages of crime. That is the first step.

NOW the next step is for you to take action TODAY and purchase a SELF DEFENSE TRAINING DVD OR A
HOT SHOT SUN GUN

Check out our new website for FREE Self Defense tips and articles

We’re all looking for that edge. That something ‘extra’ that will make us stand out amongst the sea of choices that our clients and customers are presented with.

While watching the 2006 release of Happy Feet, I was reminded that the land of business and the land of Emperor Penguins have much in common.

Let me explain…

In the land of Emperor Penguins, all penguins sing and each finds their own special song (their heart song) to attract their soul mate.

To succeed in business, a special song (your compelling offer) is what attracts new and repeat business to you on a continual basis. Yet, instead of searching for and presenting your unique heart song, many business owners try to duplicate someone else’s.

You’ve seen them; sales pages, brochures, email messages, all claiming to provide you with the ‘magic pill’ when in fact, they look and sound exactly like the previous empty promise made by another vendor.

In business, your compelling offer should not only consist of an unfulfilled need you know your target market has, but should be delivered in a way that is unique to you and your brand.

The hero of Happy Feet, Mambo, can’t sing, not a lick, which is a shock to his clan. So much so, that he is banned from his home because instead of singing like all the other penguins, he dances to express his heart.

Many business owners want to stand out as long as they can still fit in. It’s a belief based on the fear of being different.

Instead of tapping into the unique talents and skills you already posses (and designing your offer around that) you search for a way to take what everyone else is doing and make it slightly different without excluding anyone. Does that sound authentically compelling to you?

The thing is, we’ve all been there in our business. It’s not until you slow down, assess your unique and compelling proposition and then deliver that message with your own brand flair that you cross the hurdle of sameness.

If you’re at all concerned about excluding prospective clients and customers understand this brand truth…your brand is not a perfect match for everyone. Identify your perfect match and then design your message to attract them. You will only exclude those that aren’t right for you and your business. I promise you, this is a much easier model to follow.

The character of Mambo teaches us that only when you truly accept your special talents, skills and quirks will you gain that edge you seek. And who knows, once you do that, you too might start an entire revolution and be the hero of your market!

Here’s to finding your heart song.

©2007 Liz Pabon. All rights reserved.

About the author: Liz Pabon, “The Branding Maven,” is inspiring, motivating and empowering - but most importantly, she’s effective. A speaker and author on the topic of personal branding, Liz delivers insights and principles that are proven to achieve WILD SUCCESS. Liz publishes the weekly Keys 2 Wild Success! ezine. If you’re ready to ATTRACT amazing clients, set yourself APART from the pack, make a lot more MONEY, and have a lot more FUN in your small business, get Liz’s FREE WEEKLY TIPS by going NOW to http://www.thebrandingmaven.com!

Motivate Employees – Employees work precisely to earn. But since their income is fixed month after month, any words of encouragement will not spark additional interest to them. That is why businesses formulate good incentive programs for employees to make sure that the full potential of every employee is being utilized. This is because employees have something to strive for. Incentives and rebates are good motivators for employees work harder.

Improve Employee Performance – For employees, additional work is equated to additional pay. So don’t expect that they would work hard to receive the same figures on their pay slip. This does not necessarily mean that they are indolent; they just do not find any reason to work harder. This is where incentive program is effective. It gives employees the reason to work harder which is equated to improvement in their performance. What makes rewarding efficient is that you don’t need to hire additional work for to achieve a certain increase in your sales. All you have to do is to tap the potentials of your current employees by giving them reason to use it.

Attract New Costumers – People love to receive something for free. And most likely, people buy something if they receive more than what they have paid for. Also, people will continuously purchase items if they are looking forward to receive an exclusive item. This is why incentives and rebates are the most effective ways to attract new costumers. Say for example the credit cards companies. Often, credit card companies offer lots of incentives and rebates to attract new applicants or to attract current card holders to use it more often.

Dispose Inventory – One effective way to lessen your warehousing cost is to dispose your slow-moving products without throwing them away. And the best way to do it is to sell it. But since they are actually not as buyable as other products, you have to make it sell by giving costumers the reason to buy them. How? Give incentives and rebates. Take note that incentives and rebates are not limited to merchandise that are given when the purchase is made. They can also be the products themselves. So, one way to implement an incentives and rebates program is by selling them at a discounted price or at a package. This way, you push your products off your warehouse and into your costumers- giving you income in the process.

Increase Business Sales – Since your employees and costumers have the reason to sell and buy your products, you increase the sales of your business.

Promote Products – One of the most effective ways to boost your product’s popularity to the consumers is by promoting it through incentives and rebates. Incentives and rebates program attract costumers to try out your products since you are giving them something more than the product itself.

Build Costumer Loyalty – It is hard for a business to ensure costumer loyalty because of so many factors such as costumers’ behavior, costumers’ wants versus needs, costumers’ capacity to purchase, etc. The bottom line is that the market is very unpredictable to say that your current costumers will prefer your product over the other. So one way to increase your chance of making sure that your products will attract and retain costumers is by giving incentives and rebates program so that costumer will have the reason to keep coming back.

Mario Churchill is a freelance author and has written many articles on various subjects. For more information on sales incentives or employee incentives checkout his websites.

Many people enjoy doing shift work. It has the advantage of greater scheduling flexibility for the worker and give the employer greater efficiencies as well.

Shift work has different implications from the point of view of people dealing with sleep disorders however. Shift work often leads to not enough sleep which in turn can lead to a greater chance of human error and a loss of productivity.

Our bodies have a natural cycle, or internal clock, that is known as the Circadian Rhythm. This rhythm helps us know when it is time to wake up and when to sleep. These are triggered by certain chemicals, neurotransmitters and hormones. When shift works requires working at night and sleeping during the day, it can lead to lower quality sleep.

Soon this can develop into insomnia, which is characterized by a diminishment of concentration, irritability, and feelings of tension or depression. Of course, the most obvious symptom is fatigue.

When someone is dealing with these symptoms at work it can lead to accidents, injuries, absenteeism and even fatalities in extreme cases. Aside from insomnia, common problems for shift workers include indigestion, high blood pressure and an increased chance of developing other sleep disorders like sleep apnea.

If your job requires shift work there are several things you can do to improve the quality of your sleep. The most important is to be sure your sleeping area is quiet and dark. Darkness causes our bodies to release melatonin, a hormone that is significant to the Ciradian rhythm because it can initiate sleep.

While asleep, keep interruptions to a minimum and try to develop a consistent sleeping schedule. Avoid drinks with caffeine for several hours before going to sleep as well.

Another factor that many people overlook is to keep your working area bright when working at night. This will help your body to follow a normal light/dark sleep pattern.

Thomas Wilson offers helpful advice about devices to help you stop snoring and other snoring-related topics on the Snoring Solutions website. For more information and to receive your free copy of our special report “The Secrets To A Good Night’s Sleep” visit http://www.snoringsolutions.org

The brewery industry encompasses many companies you have heard about, but other companies you have never had a chance to investigate. With market cap leaders such as Anheuser-Busch Companies or Molson Coors Brewing Company being the recognizable corporations in the United States, little attention is paid to other companies such as Quilmes Industrial SA (LQU). This mid-cap 4.4 billion dollar company has had a terrific share price rally over the past few years and has the capabilities to compete with the larger cap leaders of this industry.

Quilmes takes a different spin with its brewery plan, however. Instead of focusing in the North American market, Reuters claims that this company, “a multinational brewer and marketer of beer and other beverages,” has “operations in the combined Southern Cone markets of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.” These South American countries have performed quite well over the past year. Argentina’s Merval Index has improved 16% during this time, and Chile’s Stock Market Select has also improved over 37%. It’s true that Quilmes has profited from this growth with a share price improvement of 72% this past year, but with continuing growth in these emerging markets, there is no reason to believe that these growth rates will slowdown in the foreseeable future. Even if growth will stabilize over the course of the next year, it is important to remember that beer is an inelastic good. What that means is that even when times are not economically favorable, consumers will still purchase beer in similar quantities compared to times of economic growth. Quilmes focuses on soft drink and water operations as well, both of which are also inelastic goods. These extra substitutes will only contribute to the growing revenue and profit Quilmes has seen over the past few years.

Speaking of revenue growth, Quilmes has seen 22.3% quarter over quarter yearly growth, according to Capital IQ. Its market capitalization competitors such as Molson Coors has only seen 10.6% growth, and its geographical competitors such as SouthCompanhia de Bebidas Das Americas has only seen a respective 13.6% revenue growth rate. Quilmes revenue per share over the past twelve months of 21.5 is also above SouthCompanhia’s 13.6 and Anheuser-Busch’s 20.4. This high sales growth has also transcended into profitability. Quilmes has seen 21% net income growth over the past year which is a strong number for a mid-size company. This number is also quite strong when utilized with Quilmes’ current share price. Its forward P/E ratio of 16.61 beats the industry’s respective multiple of 25 and is reasonably consistent with the multiples of its competitors.

Some may argue that this mediocre multiple illustrates that Quilmes is not undervalued. While this is true to an extent, some other useful multiples differ from this assertion. Quilmes’ enterprise value to revenue multiple of 3.55 is lower than SouthCompanhia’s 4.65, and its price to sales ratio of 3.52 is also quite lower than SouthCompanhia’s number of 4.21. Quilmes’ enterprise value to EBITDA of 8.66 is also performing quite well, beating out SouthCompanhia’s 10.80, Molson Coors’ 9.23 and Anheuser-Busch’s 10.99. With much of this cash going into capital expenditure (15.63 compared to the industry’s 0.86), this company has a strong future. Much of this capital will evolve into technological or development improvements, adding some competitive advantage against its competitors. This growth is also seen through its relatively low PEG ratio of 1.18 over the next five years, beating out all three of the aforementioned rivals.

While it may be true that this company is not undervalued compared to its high share price, there is still a lot of optimism going into this company, and you, as an investor, should follow the momentum. Much of this momentum can also be attributed to the management. Agustin Garcia Mansilla and his 6,600 employees have done a phenomenal job with this company, especially over the past couple of years. Return on equity of 30% beats the industry’s 15% and every other company in the brewery industry, excluding Anheuser-Busch. Return on Assets of 14% is also above the industry’s 7% average, and Return on Investment of 24% beats out the industry average’s 9% as well. Much of this success on the balance sheet has extended to Quilmes’ solvency. Its most recent quarter current ratio of 3.6 is handily above Molson, Anheuser-Busch, and SouthCompanhia. It does have a bit of total debt compared to cash, but total debt to equity, 0.54, does offer some reassurance. These numbers will continue to grow, given the strong optimism this company presents itself with, and should be enough to continue Quilmes to reach more historical highs.

Therefore, Quilmes is a strong buy, because of the amazing potential, given its location and fundamental background. This company has improved in terms of share price over the past 52 weeks nearly 77%, regardless of its low beta, but if South America continues to improve this company, this high rate should not concern investors. Dividend payout out at 0.9% is not as strong as some of its competitors, but with a short ratio of 2, higher than both Molson and Anheuser-Busch, a technician will remain quite optimistic on where this stock is heading. Once again, as South America continues to expand, Quilmes will too—also expanding quite nicely in your portfolio.

Dennis Biray presents advice on all kinds of topics ranging from finance and investing to fitness to sports. For more information email him at dbiray@gmail.com, or to view other articles written by him visit http://www.biraynetworks.co.nr

Many short video clips are best, especially when a file gets corrupted.

Use manual zoom (move in close) over optical or digital zoom

Shoot shoot and shoot, storage is almost free and or unused.
The more you shoot, the more good video you get. That is a fact.

Use the highest video resolution setting possible, unless videoing politicians.
They just are not worth it.

Do not use a tripod unless you want a sky cam view or are using high optical zoom.
or trying to get close-ups in dangerous situations. Then tripods are OK.
I used 2 tripods once. One for the spotting scope then my Mini DVD camcorder
lined up right behind it. It worked great. The only thing I would have changed
was the exact placement of the bait, to where the setup was pointing. Used the
remote for zoom and for off/on. So the setup was not disturbed. High High zoom.

Use the camera like a flashlight. You will catch more action and won’t get
tripped up as often. You will spot other video opportunities while shooting
this way, then quickly follow the new subject. I videoed a mouse getting caught
by a dog a few months back.

Keep the camera on automatic. Get to know how it reacts in various conditions.

When moving the camera do not use any zoom. In a vehicle creeping along, zoom is OK.

When moving and videoing; bend at the waist and extend the camera in front,
this helps eliminate the up and down movement from walking / running.

Do some commentary. Dubbing in later just is not the same.

With short clips and computer timeline playback, you can eliminate editing
spending more time videoing. Much less video clutter as well. Work hard at
not editing. Rerendering / editing results in loss of resolution.

Cup your hands around the camcorder in cold weather.

Bend at the waist and hold the camera under your chest during rain or snow.

Have an extra battery or two. Keeping the camera turned on and ready to shoot.
Mine is a mini DVD I have 4 rewritable disks (dual sided) 2 hours solid video
at the highest resolution.

Buy a power attachment that plugs into the cigarette lighter.

When shooting with a tripod. Use the remote to start and stop recording.
Eliminating the jiggle caused by hitting the on/off button.

The #1 and maybe the only reason to edit is to eliminate any criminal activity captured.
do not incriminate yourself or others.

If there is a beautiful sunrise or sunset capture some of that before and
after the main subject. They look good at full zoom every time.

Announce the date and time instead of having it display on the video.
Remember who these videos are for. YOU. Dates are handy and can always be muted.

Be prepared for confrontations. Some people just won’t like being videoed.

Videoing in family pictures with commentary is far better than scans. Video in Books
or web site threads, for playback in slow motion. Video in EVERYTHING, ignoring
the “quality” nasayers.

When videoing a stationary subject make the final scene a nice portrait. On some
players that view stays on the screen. It works.

Small file sizes (2 minutes or less) allow you to quickly upload your best to the web
hosting sites, people just love fresh video of events.

Keep the position of the sun in mind. But do shoot in any light conditions
you will be surprised at the night vision capabilities of todays equipment.

Don’t forget about taking still pictures. Some people don’t have high
speed internet.

Do not keep the camera STILL. When in a car, creep ahead slowly. Run after
that Dog, Cat or Grizzly Bear (maybe not) Move like a Weasel, snooping here,
looking there, circling this and that.

At a fastball tournament I was a few yards past first base. Had the pitcher nicely
framed. By just pointing my hand, I followed the windup and pitch, then beat
the ball to home. Catching the swing and any run to first or the play
on the ball. The big cameras just can not do that.

Short video clips make it much faster when doing timeline playback.
If you are playing the last few seconds of a short video
It is much quicker than seeing the last few seconds of a very long clip.
All I do is hit the off button then switch it right back on. Simple and
quick. During critical action I don’t mess with anything.

Video in screen displays, of the video segments you want to show and don’t
let those video purists intimidate you for doing it. It’s quick and DIRTY.
There is so much degradation when converting to flash & the net that you
won’t notice much difference.

I rename the video clips right after download. ie Vid00012_clip01.mpg
vid00012_clip02.mpg … then vid00013 for the next day or disk side.
A quick note as to what is in the lot is enough for initial cataloging.
This list I use as a control on what videos I have backed up to DVD’s.
I can do the more serious cataloging later. Don’t catalogue or edit when
you can be shooting video. Backups are a MUST.

Nature video is about content, not framing, lighting or other nit picky details.
you will miss too many shots fiddling and by not going out on less than perfect days.

Shoot almost anything wildlife or otherwise, even if it does not have much potential.
Nature will surprise you. You will capture some pretty goofy moments. I have.

Remove the lens cap at the beginning of the day. Too many good opportunities
are missed because of it. Like way way too many.

Get used to aiming your camera by looking over the top. Just like you would
a shotgun. Makes it easier to follow a moving target. Even butterflies.

When you camera is not tied to your neck or arm. Put it in it’s case. You will
be less likely to damage it.

Don’t buy a camera that is so expensive you won’t risk it. Otherwise leave it at home.

Permissions: Can you get in legal trouble by videoing others? Forget asking!
Did the guy that shot the Rodney King video ask? Did the guy that shot the
JFK Dallas video ask?

Background music can add to the enjoyment. Carry along your favourite tunes.

My default setting for the recording light is on. Letting people and animals
know when I’m shooting.

At political forums etc the record indicator, has a strange effect on the
crowd. They know you are shooting. I often do a quick early scan of the group
just to get the apprehension out of the way.

Know where your camera is at all times. You might need to grab it and go.

Experiment lots and train your eye, for spotting the ACTION.

If I was doing video of hockey. I would want the cameraman on the ice.
Of a theater production I want on the stage to video.

Have a good MultiMedia player. I have the BEST bar none.

Break all the old video rules you can. Those that won’t break, use.

I am sure there are many many more good video tips out there.

Now go shoot some video!

The old way of doing things takes too much time and effort. Eliminate editing completely.

Before the Internet grew in popularity, people had to rely on expensive home surveillance systems in their homes to keep tabs on their property, family and even identity, with people roaming through trash cans seeking old bills and bank statements to commit identity theft with them. However with the Internet and advanced technology, now you can keep an eye on things from no matter where you are in a much more affordable manner.

To set up a good surveillance system, you basically need the necessary hardware, a reliable high speed Internet connection some common sense and sense of adventure setting everything up and in place. Note a dial-up Internet connection won’t work because you’ll need faster speed for video surveillance.

You can set up your system with a personal computer where various home surveillance cameras are connected together threading your surveillance system to survey surrounding areas, record visuals at a set rate per second or via motion detection. You computer can play your video recordings via your monitor, recording video to the HDD (hard disk drive).

Note you can connect your computer to the Internet via an Internet Service Provider(ISP) so that you can watch your video from anywhere. Simply log in to your computer system with your username and password. Or log in at whenever you want and work on your computer or watch your video shots as your computer’s surveillance system has the sequenced.

Another system solution that may be easier is to check on your home via a single surveillance camera. You simply set up your camera through your Internet Protocol (IP) address. Then you just check on things, linking directly to your IP. And when you have your IP address up and running, you can actually see live views through the camera, similar to a webcam and streaming video 24/7.

Regardless of which system you decide to set up, both are fairly easy and inexpensive systems and operations. However, the second way is easier to get set up and to use. Benefits of both are that you can log in at any time to check status. Plus you can check video recordings whenever you like and change your settings.

So look into taking care of your property more closely. By investing in a surveillance system with Internet access, you might just prevent more identity theft down the road – and more than once, meaning that your system will pay for itself many times over.

Author and internet entrepreneur Bernard Pragides offers expert advice and tips regarding identity theft. Learn more about identity theft and fraud by visiting his blog at http://www.identity4life-blog.com and his website http://www.IdentityProtek.com for more helpful information.

Type 1 Diabetes is an auto immune disease that destroys the insulin producing cells of the pancreas. Type 1 Diabetes used to be called juvenile diabetes because it usually struck people under 20. In type 1 diabetes, the beta cells of the pancreas produce little or no insulin, the hormone that allows glucose to enter body cells. Once glucose enters a cell, it is used as fuel.

Type 1 Diabetes is largely inherited.

Without adequate insulin, glucose builds up in the bloodstream instead of going into the cells. The body is unable to use this glucose for energy despite high levels in the bloodstream, leading to increased hunger.

In addition, the high levels of glucose in the blood causes the patient to urinate more, which in turn causes excessive thirst. Within 5 to 10 years after diagnosis, the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas are completely destroyed, and no more insulin is produced making people with type 1 insulin dependent.

Type 1 diabetes can occur at any age, but it usually starts in people younger than 30. Symptoms are usually severe and occur rapidly.

The exact cause of type 1 diabetes is not known. Type 1 diabetes accounts for 3% of all new cases of diabetes each year. There is 1 new case per every 7,000 children per year. New cases are less common among adults older than 20.

The result is Type 1 Diabetics are hungry all the time trying to make up for the shortfall of insulin. Amazingly though since the body cannot process the nutrients weight loss is symptomatic along with extreme thirst and excessive urination. The kidneys try to process the excess glucose to balance things out. Weakness is another symptom.

Jack Krohn is a free lance writer and the #1 author of Home Security Articles in the country according to EzineArticles. His website has great FREE Home Security Information. You can get information on a
FREE HOME SECURITY SYSTEM
He has had Diabetes, Pre-diabetes and Syndrome X for nearly fifteen years. He speaks from the experiences he has had during that time. His new website is devoted to educating patients of DIABETES

He owns